PETROTAL CORP - Key Persons


Douglas C. Urch - CFO, EVP

Job Titles:
  • Chief Financial Officer
  • Executive Vice President
Douglas Urch has over 35 years of oil and gas industry experience. Previously, Mr. Urch was the Executive Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Bankers Petroleum Ltd. and Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Rally Energy Corp. Mr. Urch is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and a designated member of the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD). Mr. Urch has been a Director of PetroTal since inception and was Chairman of the Board from June 2018 until November 2019. Mr. Urch graduated from the University of Calgary with a Bachelor of Commerce degree.

Eleanor Barker

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Audit Committee
  • Non - Executive Director
  • President of Barker Oil Strategies
Eleanor Barker is President of Barker Oil Strategies, a Member of the Province of Ontario Resource Sector Audit Committee and a Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of PetroTal Corp. From 2017 to 2021 she was a Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of Serinus Energy plc. She was a Director of Sterling Resources Ltd. from 2014 to 2017. For over 30 years, Ms. Barker was an Oil and Gas Investment Analyst in Canada. Since 1995, Ms. Barker has focused exclusively on International Oil and Gas research. Ms. Barker is a past Director of the US National Association of Petroleum Investment Analysts and a former President of the Canadian Association of Investment Analysts. From 1993 to 1995 Ms. Barker was a Director of Gordon Capital. Prior to work in financial markets, she held various positions with Esso and Gulf Canada. Ms. Barker holds an MBA from the University of Western Ontario and a Hons. B.Sc. from Queen's University.

Emily Morris

Job Titles:
  • Non - Executive Director
Ms. Morris joins PetroTal's board as an independent non-executive director, bringing over 20 years of experience in energy capital markets, M&A and ESG to the Board. Ms. Morris is currently a private corporate finance consultant, having previously led the energy team for a number of investment banks in London. Her career spans equity research, fund management, sales, corporate broking and advisory across the energy and resources sectors.

Felipe Arbelaez Hoyo - Chairman

Job Titles:
  • Chairman
  • Member of the Audit Committee
  • Non - Executive Director
Mr Arbelaez Hoyos has more than 20 years of experience in the oil & gas industry and is currently leading the growth of BP's Global Hydrogen and Carbon Energy business where he has held various leadership positions. Prior responsibilities include developing and operating BP's associated renewable energy asset portfolio including solar and biofuels, onshore and offshore wind. Mr. Arbelaez Hoyos brings in depth commercial, ESG, and oil trading knowledge to the PetroTal team where he led commercial development across BP's gas value chain. Mr. Arbelaez Hoyos holds Masters Degrees in both Mechanical Engineering and Finance with language fluency in English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese.

Gavin Wilson

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Compensation and Corporate Governance Committee
  • Member of the Reserves Committee
  • Non - Executive Director
  • Investment Manager for Meridian Group of Companies
Gavin Wilson is an Investment Manager for Meridian Group of Companies, a private investment company, which has a significant shareholding in the Company. Mr. Wilson was the Founder and Manager of RAB Energy and RAB Octane, listed investment funds, from 2004 until 2011. From 1992 to 2003, he worked with Canaccord Capital London, an investment banking company, as Head of Oil and Gas, responsible for sales and Corporate Brokering/Finance. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in French History and Civilization.

Joe Contreras

Joe Contreras brings over 25 years experience managing complex oil production and technical operations to the PetroTal team. He has worked in various executive roles ranging from guiding international safety, security, and sustainability performance for projects and drilling to ensuring safe and efficient upstream and midstream onshore operations. Mr. Contreras holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the Universidad Central de Venezuela and a Master of Science in Petroleum Engineering and Project Development from the Institut Français du Pétrole.

Jon Harris

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Compensation and Corporate Governance Committee
  • Member of the Reserves Committee
  • Non - Executive Director
Mr. Harris, a resident of London, England, is an executive and industry leader in the oil and gas industry, and since January 2021, has been Chief Executive Officer of Gulf Keystone Petroleum, a London-listed company. Mr. Harris has over 30 years' experience in the oil and gas industry at SASOL Limited, an integrated energy and chemicals company based in South Africa where he was Executive Vice President, Upstream. Previously, he spent 25 years with BG Group in various international roles, including Executive Vice President Technical and General Manager Production Operations, as well as senior management assignments in the United States, Trinidad/Tobago and Egypt. With a history of delivering success and shareholder value in international E&P, Jon will provide critical technical and commercial guidance as PetroTal continues with ongoing development and growth. Jon received a Master of Engineering in Fuel and Energy (with distinction) from the University of Leeds, UK.

Jose Contreras

Job Titles:
  • Senior Vice President, Operations
Joe Contreras brings over 25 years experience managing complex oil production and technical operations to the PetroTal team. He has worked in various executive roles ranging from guiding international safety, security, and sustainability performance for projects and drilling to ensuring safe and efficient upstream and midstream onshore operations. Mr. Contreras holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the Universidad Central de Venezuela and a Master of Science in Petroleum Engineering and Project Development from the Institut Français du Pétrole.

Manuel Pablo Zúñiga-Pflücker - CEO, President, Secretary

Job Titles:
  • Chief Executive Officer
  • Corporate Secretary
  • Member of the Leadership Team
  • Member of the Reserves Committee
  • Petroleum Engineer
  • President
Manuel Zúñiga is a petroleum engineer with 30 years of industry experience. Mr. Zúñiga was a founder and the President and Chief Executive Officer of BPZ when oil was discovered in the Corvina field of the Z-1 Block, brought online in less than two years using the first floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit ever used in Peru and developed with a buoyant drilling and production platform. Prior to the completion of the Arrangement, Mr Zúñiga had been the President and Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Managers of PetroTal LLC since January 2016. He started his career as a junior engineer with Occidental Petroleum where he worked in Block 1-AB, located in the northern jungle of Peru. He was born and raised in Talara, Peru and has led exploration and development projects for oil and gas in Peru, as well as other countries in Latin America. He has established relationships with operators in Peru, including owners of the targeted assets, and has good relationships with government agencies in the region. Mr. Zúñiga holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland and a Masters of Science degree in Petroleum Engineering from Texas A&M University.

Mark McComiskey - Chairman

Job Titles:
  • Chairman of the Board
  • Member of the Audit Committee
  • Member of the Compensation and Corporate Governance Committee
  • Non - Executive Director
  • Partner at AVAIO Capital
Mark McComiskey is a partner at AVAIO Capital, a firm that focuses on value-added infrastructure investment and that spun-out of AECOM in 2019. Prior to AVAIO, Mr. McComiskey was a partner at Prostar Capital's energy business and its successor firm, Vanwall Capital, LLC. Prior to Prostar, he was Co-Head of private equity at First Reserve, a private equity firm focused on the energy industry. In addition to PetroTal, Mark has held various board positions for public and private companies in the US, Canada and Europe, including DHT, Dresser Rand, Ansaldo Energia, CHC, Sterling Resources, and Cambridge Energy Research Associates. Mark holds an AB in economics, magna cum laude, from Harvard College and a Juris Doctorate, magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School.

Roger Tucker

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Reserves Committee
  • Non - Executive Director
  • Wealth of Experience Having Been a Senior Executive
Roger Tucker brings a wealth of experience having been a senior executive in the Energy sector across the globe for over 3 decades. He has held positions in companies ranging in scope and scale from Multinational Majors, listed independents, new emerging market players and private equity funded entities. Most recently Dr Tucker has been involved in Private Equity investing in the energy space. He has directly managed very significant development projects including one of the world's largest field redevelopment projects located in Venezuela. He has lived and worked in multiple countries during his career. Roger holds a PhD in Sedimentology & Geochemistry and a BSc in Geology, both from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.